Nursery!

It's finally ready to be revealed - things have been put together for a couple weeks now, but I was waiting on a couple last items before posting pictures. Ben and I spent a lot of time on the nursery, fixing up the room, getting decor, hanging things up, etc. I can't wait to bring Lucy home to this peaceful nursery...









Ruthie wanted in on a few...





And a closet full of clothes...

38 Weeks Belly Pictures

Seeing the doctor every week now, so far, no dilation, slightly effaced, and baby still needs to drop. I have a felling Lucy's going to take her sweet time :)

Haven't felt any braxton hicks contractions yet, but occasionally I feel cramping in my lower abdomen or lower back pain. Dr. said these probably aren't braxton hicks because they end up lasting for 30+ minutes. Also, been waking up in the middle of the night because my hands are falling asleep - I asked the doctor about this and he said that it is most likely caused by the extra swelling - not as much blood is getting to my fingers as I sleep at night... interesting... it's amazing how many things happen to your body during pregnancy!

Baby's room is all ready, I'll get pictures up soon! I am feeling pretty ready too - getting more and more uncomfortable every day, and I just can't wait to meet little Lucy. Only 2 more weeks till my due date, which means 2 more weeks of work! Planning for my last day to be March 12th.

36 weeks belly

(notice the pack-n-play/bassinet all set up and ready for Lucy's first weeks at home)

36 weeks... 1 month to go!

I meant to update my blog around 35 weeks, but some how the days seem to be coming and going faster than I can keep up with! I don't know if it's because I'm extra tired or because I'm trying to fit a million things into each day as we prepare for Lucy to arrive (or maybe the combination of the two). I do have lots I still want to share on the blog, I won't include everything in this one post, but will try to update it soon!

How I'm feeling, in one word: swollen :)

Last week I had a bit of scare when my feet became extremely swollen after taking a bath and didn't go down after a night of rest. After checking with the doctor, they confirmed that all was normal and just to make sure I was elevating my feet and drinking lots of water. Little did I know, that day of swelling was only the beginning of my feet being (what seems like) twice their normal size for what appears to be the rest of my pregnancy. A las - my trusty Birkenstocks have come to my rescue and have given my x-large feet a home. Looks like I'll be in Birkenstocks or tennis shoes for the rest of the pregnancy.

I also opted to get a nice new wedding ring at Claire's a couple weekends ago after having to take my real rings off every day while sitting in my 85 degree office. Unfortunately 2 of the diamonds have already fallen out, but I guess that's why Ben didn't buy the original ring from Claire's (I don't think they're known for their quality).

Also, as of today, I officially think the baby has "dropped". Now, I may be wrong, and some people have mentioned that they didn't think I had dropped yet- but I still think it might have happened. My ribs are feeling less crowded, I'm feeling most of Lucy's movements in my pelvic area, and I think the added swelling is because she is now blocking of the veins that lead to my feet more than ever. And to confirm my belief, one of my coworkers asked if I had dropped today too!

No braxton hicks contractions, from what I can tell so far. It's funny though, it's hard to know what to expect when you've never experienced something before. But I don't think I've had any. I have felt some odd times of pain in my back and cramps in my lower abdomen, but it's usually for a long period of time and I don't notice my stomach getting tight (as most people say it does), so I think the pain is just the normal aches of pregnancy not a true "contraction".

Nursery is 90% done - Katy and I went shopping last weekend to pick up some last decorations (she has a bit of better decorating eye than Ben) and I am going to get a few more this weekend (hopefully), then I will get some pictures up on the blog. I'm really excited about the home we have made for our little girl - unfortunately she probably won't ever be old enough to appreciate it, but I still think it's pretty cute!

Going to the doctor on Friday and will find out if I am beginning to dilate at all!

34 weeks - belly pic

All I have to report about this week is that I think my belly button is going to fall off, every time I bend over it feels like my skin is going to completely rip open... is that normal? yeah, probably... :)

33 Week Survey

Much like the first trimester, I'm getting much and much less motivated to blog due to being tired most of the time! But, wanted to get something up this week (especially since there is only a couple weeks left during my pregnancy!)

Belly Button in or out: it didn't pop fully out, but it's pretty much as far out as it's going to be

Wedding rings on or off: depends, if I'm at work, in my 80 degree office - rings off. if I'm at home relaxing - rings on. I try not to sleep with them at night though, my mom said she woke up one day during her pregnancy and couldn't get her rings off so they had to cut them off. Hoping to avoid that!

Food cravings: No food cravings - although I don't feel as hungry as usual. I think there's just not enough room in my abdomen for food anymore.

Food aversions: none

Nausea: none - thank goodness, I only experienced this during the first trimester

Energy level: on it's way back down. unfortunately I have been having trouble sleeping much at night so I find myself to be completely exhausted all day long. I had about a million things to do after work this week which also left me exhausted so I'm planning to try to start saying "no" to things and start taking care of myself.

Weight gain: oddly enough I haven't been as nervous about the weight gain as much lately, I seem to be on track to gain about 40 pounds for the entire pregnancy, which is much better than what I thought it would be. I think I'm at around 30-35 right now.

Mood: too exhausted to really care much about anything, although feeling pretty anxious about getting the baby's room finalized.

Maternity clothes: even my maternity clothes are starting to feel a bit snug at times now!

Size of baby: 4 pounds (no wonder I'm tired!), 17 inches long, size of a pineapple

Changes of baby: she's rapidly losing that wrinkled, alien look and her skeleton is hardening.

Next appointment: Next Friday, I've been going every other week lately and will soon start to go every week. Lucy and I have been healthy at all of our appointments so I am extremely thankful for a smooth pregnancy so far. I have been a little irritated by the doctor's office lately, they have me come in for a 5 minute check up and end up making me wait 45 minutes to an hour. I seriously think I could do my own blood pressure and check my own pee faster than that.

Other: We started birth preparation classes two weeks ago. We'll go to 4 classes in total. I don't know what it was about the classes, but they may be feel so excited and so overwhelmed with emotion. Maybe it attending a class that I had always imagined going to with my husband (and now we actually were) or maybe it was all the practicing we were doing that made me realize our little Lucy would be arriving soon. Either way, the classes have made me really excited about being a mom soon and I love that Ben is there supporting me each and every step of the way.

32 Weeks... 8 more to go!

32 weeks and definitely feeling it! Symptoms of pregnancy currently: lots of back ache (although I've gotten 2 massages in the past 2 weeks!), stuffy nose (which is usually kind of bloody), stretched belly button, sleepless nights (I've found the couch is the most comfortable place to sleep), and trouble breathing. The third trimester is in full swing!

Also, just visited the doctor - Lucy's head is down and all is healthy! Measuring 32cm, so right on track!